Donna Herula Bio
Short Bio
Donna Herula is a Chicago-born singer and acoustic blues slide guitarist that has a passion for playing traditional blues, roots and original songs. In 2016, she was inducted into the Chicago Blues Hall of Fame and Acoustic Guitar Magazine also featured her in an article about 10 new generation resonator guitar players. Donna has been a regular performer at Buddy Guy’s Legends in Chicago for the past 10 years and has opened for Buddy Guy multiple times. She has performed at the Chicago Blues Festival, King Biscuit Blues Fest in Helena, Arkansas, the Juke Joint Fest in Clarksdale, Mississippi, numerous folk music festivals and was also the headliner at the Durban International Blues Festival in South Africa. Donna is a guitar teacher at the Old Town School of Folk Music in Chicago where she teaches group and individual guitar and slide guitar lessons. She has taught guitar and slide at blues and folk clubs and guitar camps. Her third and most recent CD, Bang at the Door, was released in May 2021 and includes original blues, jazz, folk and Americana songs. For more information, visit: donnaherula.com.
Long Bio
Donna Herula is a Chicago-born singer and acoustic blues slide guitarist that has a passion for playing traditional Delta and Country Blues, early Chicago Blues, folk, roots and Americana in addition to original songs. Using acoustic and electrified resonator guitars, her sound combines her love for music of the Deep South and Chicago with her love of blues guitar improvisation. Her songwriting tips the hat to the tradition while creating a fresh, contemporary perspectives on blues and roots music.
In 2016, Donna was inducted into the Chicago Blues Hall of Fame. The same year, Acoustic Guitar Magazine featured her in an article, “Down and Dirty: 10 contemporary resonator players talk about their love for that nasty sound.” In April 2018, she was featured in the Blues Blast Magazine article, Chicago Blues Guitar Women.
Donna has been a regular performer at Buddy Guy’s Legends in Chicago for the past 10 years and has opened for Buddy Guy multiple times. She has performed at the Chicago Blues Festival, King Biscuit Blues Fest in Helena, Arkansas, the Juke Joint Fest in Clarksdale, Mississippi, the Mississippi Valley Blues Festival, the Woodstock Folk Festival, Fox Valley Folk Music and Storytelling Festival and was also the headliner at the Durban International Blues Festival in South Africa.
Donna is a guitar teacher at the Old Town School of Folk Music in Chicago where she teaches group and individual guitar and slide guitar lessons. She has taught at guitar camps, including the Great Guitar Camp in North Carolina and Blues & Swing Week at the Augusta Heritage Center of Davis & Elkins College in West Virginia.
Donna has provided numerous Blues in the Schools and educational blues and Americana programs for children, teens and adults at schools, libraries, music stores, concert series and festivals across the US and in South Africa. She plays as a soloist, in a duet with her husband, Tony Nardiello, or band depending on the venue. She has been inspired by blues artists including Son House, Fred McDowell, Muddy Waters, Johnny Winter, Lucinda Williams, Lyle Lovett, Bonnie Raitt and Rory Block.
Her third and most recent CD, Bang at the Door, was released in May 2021 and includes original blues, jazz, folk and Americana songs. For more information, visit: donnaherula.com.